Brand as Behaviour: How to Build Rituals That Keep Your Brand Top of Mind
There’s a moment, quiet and fleeting, when your hand reaches for a particular box on the shelf. You don’t hesitate. You don’t think. You just know. The colour, the shape, the texture, it’s all very familiar and comforting. It belongs to you. You trust it.
That’s not branding. That’s behaviour – the most powerful marketing a business can hope for.
We don’t just design packaging at Gray’s, we design rituals. Small, intentional interactions that anchor your product into daily life. Transitioning your brand into an unforgettable behaviour.
Why Branding Alone Isn’t Enough
You can have a logo crafted by the best agency in London. You can build a website with animations slicker than an iPhone screen. You can throw thousands at ads. However, unless your product integrates into a customer’s everyday routine—unless it means something—it’s just noise.
Most brands think that branding is what is seen, but true brand power lies in what people do.
Take tea, for instance. It’s so much more than a mere drink! People have their favourite mugs, poured to a certain level – more than half, almost-full, milk, black, cream – it’s a whole ritual! Now, imagine your packaging becomes part of that ritual: a smooth wooden lid that clicks shut with a satisfying snap. A tin that nestles perfectly into the hand. A label that peels cleanly, inviting a refill.
That’s not packaging. That’s muscle memory. And muscle memory doesn’t forget.
The Neuroscience of Ritual
When a behaviour is repeated often enough, it becomes a habit. And when a habit connects to a brand, it becomes a ritual. Neuroscientists call this process chunking—the brain’s way of linking actions into a chain. Once the chain begins, the rest follows automatically.
The trigger could be the scent of your product. The pop of a magnetic closure. The crisp crrrk of vellum tearing. These small, sensory details activate the brain’s basal ganglia, the region responsible for habit formation.
But it’s not just about repetition. Emotion matters.
According to neuroscientist Antonio Damasio, “We are not thinking machines that feel, we are feeling machines that think.” When your packaging elicits a smile, a memory, or even a sense of anticipation, you’re no longer competing on shelf space. You’re competing for brain space.
And brain space is far more valuable.
What Makes Ritual Stick?
Let’s break it down. Rituals are made of three parts:
- The Cue
Something that triggers the behaviour. In packaging, this could be a colour (Tiffany blue), a scent (Lush), or a sound (the pop of a Pringles lid). - The Routine
The actual behaviour. Pouring, peeling, unboxing. This is where tactile design becomes critical. How it opens. How it feels. How it looks under natural light. - The Reward
The emotional payoff. Satisfaction. Joy. Surprise. A moment of calm on a busy day.
Brands that master this cycle build loyalty, not the kind which is driven by discounts. We’re talking about felt loyalty, where customers return because they want to, not because they’re bribed to.
Behavioural Branding in Action: Real-World Examples
Let’s look at some companies that understand brand as behaviour, some from the gifting world, others from adjacent industries:
1. Aesop: The Ritual of Cleanliness
Aesop’s products feel almost sacred. From the amber glass bottles to the minimalist labels, their packaging looks like something found in an apothecary. It cues a certain mood: intentional living. People often leave the bottles out as decor, building them into their space and routine.
2. Rituals Cosmetics: It’s in the Name
Their entire brand is about slowing down, enjoying everyday moments turning routines into rituals. Their packaging is tactile, refillable, and beautifully scented. The design philosophy speaks directly to behaviour, not just appearance.
3. Fortnum & Mason Hampers: Seasonal Rituals
These iconic hampers are not everyday items, but they define how British households experience Christmas. The wicker basket, the ribbon, the handwritten tags they signal celebration. People anticipate them. And that’s exactly what ritual marketing is all about.
4. Jo Malone: Sound, Scent, and Sight
The distinct click of the Jo Malone perfume lid. The creamy, heavyweight box, the bow, the layering of scent stories. Every detail cues emotion. Even the unboxing feels orchestrated, making it a highly shareable and memorable experience.
Packaging as Behavioural Design
Let’s talk about strategy. How do we embed rituals into packaging?
The packaging process at Grays begins with what feels right, emotionally, behaviourally and neurologically. Here are a few principles we apply in creating bespoke printed packaging and sustainable luxury boxes that are not only beautiful but behaviourally sticky:
1. Texture Builds Trust
Studies show that rougher textures are often associated with authenticity and trust. That’s why kraft paper and embossed finishes feel so real. When someone touches your packaging, they’re making a judgement, often subconsciously, about the values of your brand.
2. Sound is Underrated
The subtle “swish” of silk tissue. The “thud” of a weighted box lid. The “snap” of a magnetic closure. These sounds aren’t just ASMR content, they’re anchors. Sound reinforces memory. It’s why signature sounds are part of branding guidelines in luxury car companies.
3. Consistency Without Monotony
Ritual doesn’t mean boring. You want people to feel something predictable but still delightful. Think of it like a favourite song, you know the lyrics, but you still smile when the chorus hits. Packaging can do the same with recurring surprises, like, secret compartments, seasonal inserts, custom messages.
4. Sustainability Feeds the Ritual
Today’s consumers are very aware and conscious. They aren’t just looking for aesthetics, they’re seeking alignment. FSC-certified papers, reusable tins, recyclable textures all become part of the story. A customer who reuses your box to store letters or jewellery continues the brand interaction long after the product is gone.
Why Retail Packaging is Your Most Underused Touchpoint
Imagine walking into a boutique. The lighting is warm, the staff attentive, the scent subtle. You immediately feel cared for. Now, imagine receiving a package from that same brand which is flimsy, generic, forgettable.
Isn’t the dissonance real?
This is where retail packaging solutions become your frontline strategy. Your packaging carries your promise. A great unboxing builds trust before the product even emerges.
According to a 2023 study by Dotcom Distribution, 61% of consumers said that premium packaging makes a brand feel more upscale. And over 40% shared packaging they found aesthetically pleasing on social media.
That’s free marketing. And ironically, it starts with the box.
Brands That Behave Become Brands That Belong
Have you ever kept your Apple boxes long after the product is out? Has any particular coffee tin become planters in your home too? Have certain gift boxes become your safe place to hold letters or movie tickets?
Yes, but why? The answer lies in the way our mind remembers. When we buy products, we are actually buying rituals. This is the secret to building a brand that stays top of mind. Not through constant noise, but through deep emotional architecture. Packaging becomes part of life. It enters the home. It’s kept, not discarded.
In his bestselling book The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg explains how habits are not just actions but systems. The same applies to brands. If your packaging becomes part of the system, you don’t need to shout, all you need now is to show up.
The Grays Approach to Behavioural Packaging
At Grays, we specialise in bespoke product packaging that doesn’t just sit on shelves but lives in routines.
Here’s how we do it:
1. Start With Story
Every box, bag, or bottle begins with a narrative. Are you a bold brand? Gentle? Rebellious? Sophisticated? Packaging is your medium for storytelling, not just storage.
2. Design with the Brain in Mind
Our designs take cues from neuroscience. We know how textures influence emotion. How colour affects decision-making. How smell impacts recall. Our packaging is not wild guess, it’s built with intention.
3. Sustain with Style
As a bespoke packaging company, we care about more than just looks. Our solutions are designed for the circular economy, luxury that doesn’t cost the earth. Reuse, refill, recycle… and remember.
4. Deliver Calm, Not Chaos
You shouldn’t be chasing production schedules. From sourcing materials to managing drops, we handle the entire execution with precision and calm.
The Comparison That Says It All
Do you crave books too? Imagine one. But what kind of book? Is it in paperback, a PDF, or a beautiful cloth-bound edition with gold-foiled edges. The words are identical in each one of them but the experience is not!
Similarly, you can deliver the same product in a plain box or in one that feels like an heirloom. One is disposable, but the other becomes part of the story. Which one do you think customers will remember?
Final Thoughts: Branding is Memory, and Memory is Ritual
In a crowded market, being noticed once isn’t enough. You have to be remembered again and again. That’s how memory is built through too. Through repetition, through the tiny moments we don’t even notice—the way we reach, touch, open, breathe in.
That’s why at Grays, we think of packaging as a behavioural portal. A doorway into a story the customer gets to live, not just buy.
Because in the end, branding isn’t about what you say. It’s about what people do with you.
Originally published on https://grayslondon.co.uk/
